To think we will have to leave our phones at home

[Pippy2022]

Fraud and phone theft is becoming such a problem I think it will reach a point where it's safer to leave the smart phone at home, certainly when visiting a city like London.

Maybe smart phones will become such a risk - as in our lives are on them - we will stop using them and revert to bricks? Use tablets at home etc.

Or we'll start using lanyards to keep the phones around our necks as people do in many other countries?

What are the statistics on phone thefts in London? I can’t see that the risk outweighs the benefits to be honest. Also I don’t think your average phone thief has the technology to get into a phone that has a PIN code to commit fraud - they’d have to get past passcodes and Face ID.

Funnily enough, I have an android and a 'brick'. But the reason is that, when I'm out and about, I'm ALWAYS checking my phone, and I really want to cut down my Internet use.

Errrm no, I think I'll continue to carry my phone everywhere, even here in London 😳

My train and hotel bookings are on my phone though. Just keep it in hand when used and out of sight at other times. Don’t walk around with in front of you or stop in middle of street to look at it.

Eh? I work and live in London. Haven't had a phone stolen since 1999.

I'd feel safer with the tool that allows me to navigate, pay, call, search information in my pocket than none of those things.

Born and bred Londoner. The only time I've ever been robbed is when I lived in Madrid...

I've lived and worked here 55 years and never had one stolen, nor have my family.

Or perhaps use your phone sensibly, as in keep it in your pocket. If you need to make a call go into a shop or something. Don't just stand there by the kerb looking at maps or texting and making yourself a sitting target.

Literally everyone in London has a smartphone on them. Phone theft is high profile and annoying but most Londoners have never had a phone stolen. Just be sensible about waving it around in the street.

I think a large number of thefts are 'open' 'phones, whilst they are being used. The security can then be quickly changed, if there are banking aps, it can mean your bank account is vulnerable.
There was a case in TV of a guy having his 'phone stolen, and within a small time frame his bank had received a request for a £23K loan, which they granted.

There are almost 10 million people living in London, op.
Do you imagine they all leave their phones at home every time they leave the house?

certainly when visiting a city like London.
Visiting? What about the nearly 9million people who live there?

No, I think people will just have to go back to sensible phone usage.

walking down the street with something expensive in your hand has never been a good idea.

You can carry your phone, you just have to keep it in your bag until you get somewhere safe. I used to walk down the street using mine for directions - no more! I also don't get it out on the tube, because I have quite an expensive one and you never know who's watching and following you get off. It's horrible to have to be so security conscious - but that's the reality now after umpteen years of the Met Police doing fuck all about phone theft!!

Don't be silly.

There's nearly 9m people who live in London.

Something like 20m visitors a year.

58k phone thefts a year.

It's hardly an issue. Just be sensible. Keep your phone in your bag/zipped pocket, be sensible about when you have it out and don't get yourself engrossed in it.

People just stop walking around like a zombie staring at their phone. Put it in your pocket or zip bag like your wallet. Not surgically attached to your hand.

eg for navigating around a city people need to try using their brain to look at a route in advance and remember a couple of direction steps. If you need to check the map, stop, take out your phone, look and refresh your memory, then put it away again. We all managed fine with A-Zs back in the day (grumble grumble)

I went to London a few days ago and was slightly worried after reading on here that phone theft was a real problem in London.

However that seems to be a bit of an exaggeration as I didn't see anyone being particularly concerned or careful with their phones, shouting that they'd been robbed or anyone running off or looking shifty. People were using their phones for directions etc, waving them around, taking selfies or they were hanging out of jeans pockets just like normal (mine was in a zipped pocket and I had print outs of my train ticket and hotel details and a separate payment card in another zipped pocket).

This was even in very busy central areas - I saw the Christmas lights on Regent Street and the surrounding area after finding a thread on here about it and it was rammed with tourists.

I was also in another European capital city earlier this year and all the info online seemed to be saying that I would be robbed as soon as I left the train station but even though I walked nearly a mile from the station to my hotel at around 9 pm I never felt unsafe. Most other people were going out for the evening so there were lots of people around.

We were visiting London last month - 2 smart phone. Useful for directions, calling up e-mail for hotel- checking train times back as weather was hugely impacting - opening hours finding nearby places to ate- photos - checking in with teens.

They aren't the all singing and dancing ones - mine is old - though DH had new one but not top range.

We had no issues - lot of other people with phones out - we were in tourist bits - none one seem to be mugged for their phones.

Yup. Lived in South London and worked in central London for 30 years. Never had a phone stolen. I dropped one on the Northern Line tube track where it got smashed to a million pieces though.

Either way insurance is your friend.

A phone is reported stolen in London every 6 minutes.

On average 248 were stolen EACH DAY in London in 2022 and that figure has probably risen.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-65105199

That’s scary; I’m assuming they must have had their banking app open at the time?. Surely though if you apply for loan the money doesn’t hit your account immediately so I’m struggling with how the thieves got access to the money before the phone automatically logged out of the app.

My son had his phone stolen in January in Manchester. It had all that security and he got his identity stolen. It was horrible.